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2009 Portland GSA Annual Meeting (18-21 October 2009)

Paper No. 6
Presentation Time: 9:00 AM-6:00 PM

FACIES DISTRIBUTION OF DEVONIAN-MISSISSIPPIAN SILICICLASTIC STRATA, CENTRAL APPALACHIAN BASIN: PRELIMINARY CROSS SECTIONS FOR EVALUATING GEOLOGIC CARBON SEQUESTRATION OPPORTUNITIES IN THE BEREA AND RAVENCLIFF SANDSTONES


GREENAWALD, David1, MACCORD, Erin1 and GRIMM, Ryan P.2, (1)Geosciences, Virginia Tech, 4044 Derring Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24060, (2)Department of Geosciences, Virginia Tech, 4044 Derring Hall, Blacksburg, VA 24061, vtdavid@vt.edu

Examinations of the stratigraphy of the Devonian-Mississippian siliciclastic succession in southwest Virginia through southeastern West Virginia were completed to determine depositional trends for applications interested in the potential for shale gas extraction and CO2 sequestration injection. Using geophysical log datasets from Wise, Dickenson, Buchanan & McDowell counties and subsurface software, multiple cross sections were constructed to review significant structural and stratigraphic trends of the Virginia & West Virginia gas fields. Results for the Berea sandstone are interpreted as possible depositional environments: shore face sand formed at eustatic lowstand during the Early Mississippian with the shore face being sorted by beach sand and ocean currents from the west; or a submarine fan package preserved in a deepwater setting. The Ravencliff sandstone formation and Pride Shale member of the Bluestone formation represent Upper Mississippian sedimentary deposits in the Appalachian basin of southwest Virginia. The Ravencliff sandstone is interpreted to be a eustatic LST deposit followed by a transgression into the Pride Shale prodeltaic sediments caused by regional base level rise during the Alleghenian orogeny around 350 Ma. Multiple carbon sequestration and hydrocarbon targets identified in the area consisted of porous sand contained within the organic shales, providing organic adsorption opportunities and lithologic seals. The observed structural syncline feature present in Dickenson County, Virginia may provide potential opportunities for basin centered shale gas and CO2 sequestration in southwest Virginia through southeast West Virginia. Future opportunities to evaluate core and outcrop samples will better constrain reservoir parameters such as total organic content, porosity and permeability.

Session No. 115--Booth# 344

T102. Geological and Environmental Sciences Research Forum: Greater Visibility and Interactions between the Undergraduates and K–12 Students (Posters)
Monday, 19 October 2009: 9:00 AM-6:00 PM
Hall A (Oregon Convention Center)
Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 41, No. 7, p.319
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